Pa. takes puff of medical marijuana

Sunday

Feb 9, 2014 at 12:01 AM

Christopher Kenney, 17, suffers hundreds of seizures each week.

HOWARD FRANK

Christopher Kenney, 17, suffers hundreds of seizures each week.

The Lehigh Valley teen has a rare condition that causes parts of his brain to harden. It began when he was 6 weeks old, and 16 years of surgeries, treatments, drugs and clinical trials still haven't stopped the seizures.

His mother, Deena, wants to try medical marijuana, which has shown some success in seizure-related and other disorders. But Pennsylvania says no.

A bill introduced in the state Senate this year would allow the state to join 20 other states, along with the District of Columbia, in allowing the growth or use of marijuana for medical purposes.

Currently that can land you in jail in Pennsylvania.

The bill, SB 1182, is called the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act. It permits Pennsylvania physicians to recommend marijuana to patients who would medically benefit from its use.

The bill's sponsors are an unlikely pair: Lebanon County Sen. Mike Folmer, R-48, one of the Senate's most conservative legislators, and Montgomery County Sen. Daylin Leach, D-17, one of its most liberal.

Their bill specifies a non-intoxicating mixture of marijuana very high in cannabidiols that has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant rich properties along with very low levels of tetrahydrocannabinols, better known as THC. That's the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.

The bill is in the Senate Law and Justice Committee. Several parents with children recently testified before the committee, describing the "brutal and heartbreaking struggle they and their children are going through," Leach wrote in a letter to the state's Physician General, Dr. Carrie DeLone.

"I heard some of the gut-wrenching testimony at the hearing a couple of weeks ago," said state Rep. Mario Scavello, R-176. "Some of those families are really suffering."

The bill, in its embryonic form, makes medicinal marijuana available for a wide range of ailments, from cancer treatments to post-traumatic stress disorder to pain management.

Approved users would get medical marijuana identification cards. The process would be overseen by a Gaming Control Board-like regulatory structure.

The bill, if passed, would establish the Pennsylvania Medical Cannabis Board, an independent administrative regulatory agency. Among its responsibilities would be to grant licenses for medical cannabis farms and commercial medical cannabis manufacturers.

Among the board's many duties would be to identify classes, varieties and brands of medical cannabis deemed acceptable by the board.

Although now just a Senate bill in committee, Scavello said he'd support some kind of legislation to legalize medical marijuana.

But he warns the state needs to narrow its uses, be watchful on how medical marijuana is distributed, and by whom.

"I don't want it to become available to everyone," he said. "You have to protect it. If you're going to do it for the medicinal, you have to make sure it doesn't become available elsewhere."

Some other Pocono representatives have similar feelings.

"Considering the quantified medical benefits now attributed to marijuana, I support it's legalization for use in treatment of specific medical situations," said state Rep. Mike Carroll, D-118.

"The proposed Senate bill rightly outlines very specific provisions related to the availability and oversight of its use. Should the Senate approve the legislation, I expect the oversight provisions to be thoroughly vetted for this targeted use."

Brown worked in the pharmaceutical industry and health care before her election to the House. Her job was to educate physicians on the benefits and studies of specific drugs for major pharmaceutical makers.

"I find this experience has made me keenly aware that there are medical conditions that traditional therapy may not work for, and that each body responds differently to medications," Brown said.

Another way to put it, she said, was that treatment that works for one person may not work for another. For that reason, doctors often use medicine "off label," or for purposes other than the originally intended usage.

State Sen. Lisa Baker, R-20, opposes any recreational-use measure, but concedes there are some very strong advocates of legalizing medical marijuana.

"Of the many issues before state legislators, this is a relatively new subject. And it is one that cuts against the grain of the traditional anti-drug sentiment prevalent in most parts of the state," she said.

"A recent committee hearing started the discussion. At this point, there seem to be more questions than reliable answers. The earnest desperation of the parents cannot help but make an impression. But opinion by medical practitioners and groups is deeply split."

Without a clear signal from the governor that he would be willing to sign a medical marijuana bill, Baker said it is doubtful the issue gains legislative traction this year.

Baker was the only local state senator that responded to requests for an interview. There may be a good reason why.

"Historically, leaders have been reluctant to put up controversial bills they know the governor of their own party will veto. It surprised me there was a hearing," said G. Terry Madonna, director of the Franklin & Marshall College Poll and professor of public affairs at Franklin & Marshall College. He's been following Pennsylvania state politics for more than two decades.

While the Republican-controlled Senate works in a more moderate, bipartisan way, the House, also Republican-controlled, is far more conservative, Madonna said.

Does he think the bill will pass the Legislature? He's uncertain if the bill will even get out of committee.

"It would be hard for me to believe they will put it up for a vote. Especially when there is some controversy involved."

Republican Gov. Tom Corbett has said he did not support medical marijuana. But Madonna said Corbett's statement lacked specificity. That could add a little wiggle room in the future to negotiate what is now a very early-stage, raw bill.

"I think it's conceivable at some point the state will have medical marijuana, but I don't see it happening this year," Madonna said. "I can see the Legislature doing it at some point. I just don't see it happening at this point."

Eric Boehm of PA Independent contributed to this story.

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